Book Description:
The young nurse ran across the wooden deck, her feet skidding. She spotted an injured young man clinging to the ship’s rail, his eyes wide with terror. She could see the water rushing up to meet them. ‘We need to jump!’ she screamed. In that moment, a wave washed over them. She lunged forward to grab his hand, but she was a second too slow. Somewhere, deep inside the vessel, came a loud crack. The hospital ship was breaking apart…
1914. Evie Munro is a Scottish fisher girl, working the herring season from Wick to Great Yarmouth. For Evie, every day is the same – gutting fish at the docks, shoulder-to-shoulder with her friends, followed by fresh bread, a warm whiskey toddy and an early night. But when Germany declares war on Britain, everything changes.
As her village begins to empty of young men, Evie’s life is marked by a heartbreaking tragedy at home. Her happiness destroyed, she vows to join the war effort as an army nurse, caring for wounded soldiers on the imposing hospital ship Britannic.
But as the war rages on and the ship comes under direct fire, Evie’s courage is put to the ultimate test. Can Evie and the nurses of the HMHS Britannic save the day and heal the patients in their care? Or will her life become one more casualty in Britain’s heroic fight for freedom?
A heartbreaking wartime saga – guaranteed to have you grabbing for the tissues! Perfect for fans of Nadine Dorries, Diney Costeloe and Nancy Revell.
BLOG TOUR REVIEW
Review for 'The Sea Nurses' by Kate Eastham.
Read and reviewed via NetGalley for Kate Eastham, Bookouture publishers and Bookouture anonymous
Publication date 6th June 2022.
This is the second book that I have read by this author. I have also read 'An Angel's Work' which I would highly recommend.
I was originally drawn to this book by its beautiful and colourful cover and intriguing sounding blurb. The synopsis stated that this book is 'Perfect for fans of Nadine Dorries, Diney Costeloe and Nancy Revell'. I am a huge fan of Nancy Revell so am hoping this lives up to the statement. I am also a huge fan of Kate and if this is half as good as 'An Angel's Work' it is guaranteed to be a page turner!! I also wanted to read something other than my usual genre of crime fiction and this book fitted the bill perfectly. I must admit I was also biased due to the publisher being Bookouture. I have yet to read a book published by Bookouture that I haven't enjoyed. Hopefully this won't be the first... Watch this space! (Written before I started reading the book).
This novel consists of a prologue, 22 chapters and an epilogue set over 3 parts. The chapters are medium in length so possible to read 'just one more chapter' before bed...OK, I know yeah right, but still just in case!
This book is set on the RMS Olympic, in Great Yarmouth and Hampshire, England 🏴 and on the HMHS Britannic and HMHS Valdivia.
This book is written in third person perspective and the main protagonists are Iris Purefoy, Evie Munro and Jack Rosetti. The benefits of third person perspective with multiple protagonists are that it let's you see the bigger picture of what's going on and you get to know more characters more, what they are thinking and what they are doing. It feels like you get to see the whole picture and not miss out in anything.
An emotional rollercoaster coaster ride that does justice to war hero's and victims.
This book is beautifully written from start to finish with descriptions and events that really impact the reader. The settings were perfect for the storyline and I felt as if I was going through everything with the characters. I loved that it was set in so many different places and it felt like I was exploring the world with Iris and Evie. I was devastated to come to the end and have to unpack my cases. It also shows that the author has obviously done her research so a big congratulations on that as it is really irritating when I read historical novels to find the author has done no research and there's so many obvious errors throughout. I was intrigued to find out that Kate had based this novel after reading about Violet Jessop who was a real life sea nurse and I'm looking forward to reading more about her. I always enjoy discovering hero's I had not previously heard of so thank you Kate.
The storyline itself is very powerful and will stay with me for a long time. I also believe it will make a beautiful film. I love the fact that although it is set in darker time that's there's some moments of light hearted humour and romance which lifts the atmosphere on occasions while keeping in mind the seriousness of the situation. I love that this book highlights the importance of women's roles during the war as these can be easily forgotten. This book was a true eye opener to some of the horrific things that would have happened during the war. I held my breathe on several occasions with the many close encounters of several kinds and red herrings which u kept falling for time and again all the way up to the end so well done on that trickery Kate Eastham!! The book is rammed with emotions and is a true rollercoaster ride of them from love to heartbreak, sadness to joy. The book ended absolutely perfectly and I'm over the moon to discover that there will be another book following on their story which I'm looking forward to reading!!
All the characters were portrayed perfectly. I love that there are many strong female role models, mainly that of Iris and Evie who have a fantastic relationship although they were worlds apart with such different personalities and I loved watching their relationship grow and bond deeper. Evie character made me laugh on several occasions with her great and huge personality along with her no nonsense attitude. Along with Iris I really enjoyed that they both were very strong, independent and dedicated role models.
Get the tissues out and clear your schedules for this unputdownable tear jerker.
Congratulations Kate on a fantastic page turner, here's to your next success 🥂
Overall a powerful, emotional and heart wrenching beautiful novel about friendship, dedication and love during the war.
Genres covered in this novel include Historical Fiction, Women's Sagas, Historical, Women's Historical Fiction, Wartime Saga, Historical Nursing Fiction and Women's Romance Fiction among others.
I would recommend this book to the fans of the above as well as fans of Nadine Dorries, Diney Costeloe, Nancy Revell, World War II historical Fiction lovers or anyone looking for an aspiring book to read.
284 pages.
This book is £1.99 to purchase on kindle via Amazon which I think is an absolute bargain for this book!!!
Rated 5/5 (I LOVED it ) on Goodreads, Instagram, Amazon UK and Amazon US and on over 30 Facebook pages plus my blog on Facebook.
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@KateEastham @Bookouture @Bookworm1986 @bookworm86
Author Bio:
A change in circumstance meant Kate Eastham made the shift from a career in nursing to being a carer for her partner. Determined to make the most of this new role ‘working from home’ and inspired by an in-depth study of the origins of nursing, she wrote her first novel at the kitchen table. Miss Nightingale’s Nurses was published by Penguin in 2018, closely followed by three more in the series. With her passion for history, Kate aims to make visible the lives of ordinary yet extraordinary women from the past. Her current historical fiction is set during the World Wars and will be published by Bookouture.
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Buy Link:
Amazon: https://geni.us/B09VHDPX1Zsocial
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